This invention relates to a swath pick-up for a combine harvester.
Conventionally a combine harvester includes a feeder housing which is mounted on the combine for raising and lowering movements. Immediately in front of the feeder housing and fixedly mounted thereon is a guide pan arrangement which provides a pan surface which directs the crop material toward the feeder housing. On top of the pan surface is mounted an auger element including a cylindrical drive body with a pair of flight portions attached to the cylindrical drive body and arranged at respective ends thereof so as to guide crop material from the ends of the pan inwardly towards the feeder housing. In some cases a central bare section of the cylindrical body carries a plurality of radially projecting fingers which rotate with the auger element but have an axis of rotation offset from the axis of the auger element so that the finger extend and retract cyclically as the auger element rotates. This tends to grasp material forwardly of the auger element and sweep it under the auger element into the feeder housing while the retraction of the fingers rearwardly of the auger element prevents the fingers from carrying the material up and over the auger element in a wrapping action. A separate pick-up section is pivotally mounted to the pan and feeder housing for pivotal movement about an axis at the front of the pan. The pick-up section includes a rotatable pick-up element including a plurality of fingers which rotate about an axis transverse to the direction of movement for lifting the crop from the ground and directing it over the pick-up element. A conveyor which is generally a draper type conveyor is positioned immediately rearwardly of the pick-up element so that the material from the pick-up element is dropped onto the draper and then carried rearwardly to the pan.
While pick-ups of this type have been widely used and have become generally accepted, they still have a number of disadvantages and problems particularly in relation to the feeding of the material from the pick-up rearwardly onto the pan and into the feeder housing.
It is one object of the present invention, therefore, to provide an improved pick-up which provides an improved movement of the material from the pick-up element rearwardly into the feeder housing.
According to the first aspect of the invention there is provided a pick-up for crop material in a swath for feeding into a feeder housing of a combine harvester, the pick-up comprising frame means, means for attachment of the frame means to the feeder housing, a feed pan member having a width transverse to a direction of motion of the combine greater than the feeder housing an arranged to define a surface over which the crop material travels for passage into the feeder housing, a cylindrical auger element mounted above the pan member with a longitudinal axis thereof transverse the direction of movement including flight means mounted on a peripheral surface of the auger element for driving the crop material inwardly from sides of the pan member toward the feeder housing, a pick-up member at a front of the pick-up including a plurality of pick-up elements rotatable about an axis transverse to said direction of movement for lifting the crop material from the ground over the pick-up member, and a conveyor member arranged to provide force on the crop material at a position rearwardly of said pick-up member for transporting the crop material from said pick-up member onto said pan member, the conveyor member defining a conveyor surface including opening means therein and means for generating an air flow through the opening means providing a force on the crop material in an upward and rearward direction.
According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a pick-up for crop material in a swath for feeding into a feeder housing of a combine harvester, the pick-up comprising frame means, means for attachment of the frame means to the feeder housing, a feed pan member having a width transverse to a direction of motion of the combine greater than the feeder housing and arranged to define a surface over which the crop material travels for passage into the feeder housing, a cylindrical auger element mounted above the pan member with a longitudinal axis thereof transverse the direction of movement including flight means mounted on a peripheral surface of the auger element for driving the crop material inwardly from sides of the pan member toward the feeder housing, a pick-up member at a front of the pick-up including a plurality of pick-up elements rotatable about an axis transverse to said direction of movement for lifting the crop material from the ground over the pick-up member, and a conveyor member arranged to provide force on the crop material at a position rearwardly of said pick-up member for transporting the crop material from said pick-up member onto said pan member, the pan member including a curved surface portion flowing the curvature of the peripheral surface of the auger element and a connecting surface portion extending from a rear edge of the conveyor member to a front edge of the curved surface portion, the curved surface portion being rigidly attached to the feeder housing for movement therewith and the pick-up member, conveyor member and connecting surface portion being mounted on a frame section separate from the feeder housing and mounted for pivotal movement relative to the feeder housing about an axis transverse to the direction of movement.
According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a pick-up for crop material in a swath for feeding into a feeder housing of a combine harvester, the pick-up comprising frame means, means for attachment of the frame means to the feeder housing, a feed pan member having a width transverse to a direction of motion of the combine greater than the feeder housing and arranged to define a surface over which the crop material travels for passage into the feeder housing, a cylindrical auger element mounted above the pan member with a longitudinal axis thereof transverse the direction of movement including flight means mounted on a peripheral surface of the auger element for driving the crop material inwardly from sides of the pan member toward the feeder housing, and a pick-up member at a front of the pick-up including a plurality of pick-up elements rotatable about an axis transverse to said direction of movement for lifting the crop material from the ground over the pick-up member, the auger member including a first and a second flight portion at respective ends thereof each configured to urge crop material inwardly from the respective end toward said feeder housing and a central portion free from said flight portions, and a plurality of fingers mounted on the auger element at said central portion and projecting in a generally radial direction therefrom, the fingers being arranged to rotate with the auger element and arranged to have an axis of rotation offset from the axis of the auger element so that the fingers extend and retract relative to the outer peripheral surface of the auger element as the auger element rotates with the position of maximum extension being forwardly of the auger element and a position a minimum extension being rearwardly of the auger element adjacent to the feeder housing, the diameter of the auger element, the length of the fingers and the distance of offset of the axis of rotation of the fingers from the axis of the auger element to being such that the fingers project at their maximum extension to a position forwardly of said pan member.
With the foregoing in view, and other advantages as will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which this invention relates as this specification proceeds, the invention is herein described by reference to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, which includes a description of the best mode known to the application and of the preferred typical embodiment of the principles of the present invention, in which: